1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a basketball system and, in particular, to a portable basketball system.
2. Description of Related Art
As the game of basketball has increased in popularity, a large number of people have purchased basketball systems for use at their homes. Previous basketball systems were typically permanently mounted in the driveway or other dedicated location at the person's house. Many people, however, do not have the space or desire to have a basketball system permanently located at their house. Accordingly, portable basketball systems have been developed in order to allow the basketball system to be moved or transported.
Conventional portable basketball systems must have sufficient weight to hold the basketball goal in a generally fixed or stationary position while playing the game of basketball. Disadvantageously, some conventional portable basketball systems require a large amount of weight to maintain the basketball goal in a fixed or stationary position. The large amount of weight makes these known basketball systems difficult to move and it may require several people to move or set up the basketball goal. Additionally, these known basketball systems that require a large amount of weight may be prohibitively expensive for many consumers.
It is also known for portable basketball systems to use removable weights to hold the basketball goal in a fixed position while playing the game of basketball and then the weights are removed when it is desired to move the basketball goal. The removable weights, however, are often extremely heavy and difficult to move. In addition, the weights may create a safety hazard if the weights inadvertently fall or move. The removable weights also create a basketball system that is large and bulky.
Conventional portable basketball systems may also use a base with a hollow cavity for receiving ballast material such as sand or water. These conventional basketball systems allow the system to be moved where desired and then the base is filled with the ballast material to maintain the basketball goal in the fixed position. When it is desired to move the basketball goal, the ballast material may be removed from the base and the portable basketball system can then be moved.
Known portable basketball systems often include a support pole that supports the basketball goal above a playing surface. The support pole is often connected to the base by a through-hole that extends through the base. Disadvantageously, forming a through-hole in the base increases the weight of the base, which is undesirable because it increases the costs to ship the portable basketball system and it makes the system more difficult to transport. In addition, creating the through-hole in the base increases the time required to form the base, which further increases manufacturing costs. Further, the through-hole decreases the size of the hollow cavity inside the base, which allows less ballast material to be inserted into the base. Accordingly, a larger size base must be created in order to overcome the loss of space caused by the through-hole.
These conventional portable basketball goal systems are often marketed directly to consumers in retail stores. The large size of the portable basketball systems, however, may discourage or prevent consumers from purchasing the basketball system. In particular, consumers may be reluctant to purchase a large portable basketball system because of the amount of effort required to transport the system from the store to their homes.
Conventional portable basketball systems are generally shipped unassembled and the manufacturer typically includes a number of fasteners with the system to allow the retailer or consumer to assemble the basketball system. Many manufacturers include several extra fasteners with the system in case one or more of the fasteners are lost or broken. Undesirably, this increases the cost of the portable basketball system. On the other hand, if extra fasteners are not included by the manufacturer and one or more of the fasteners are lost or broken, then the retailer or consumer must find suitable replacement fasteners and this may be very difficult for consumers who are not accustomed to assembling larger structures such as portable basketball systems.
Many customers may also be intimidated by the assembly of these complex basketball systems. For example, conventional portable basketball systems typically require connection of numerous fasteners to interconnect the various components such as the base, support pole, backboard and rim assembly. Many consumers may be unable or unwilling to connect the numerous fasteners of conventional basketball systems. The assembly of conventional portable basketball systems may also require the use of tools. Consumers, however, may not have the correct tools and they may be forced to purchase or borrow the necessary tools. The lack of proper tools may make some consumers reluctant to purchase conventional portable basketball systems, and may even prevent some customers from doing so.